Nevin Manimala

Reprod Sci. 2023 Nov 13. doi: 10.1007/s43032-023-01393-8. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

We investigated the polymorphisms/mutations in synaptonemal complex central element protein 1 (SYCE1) and CDC25A mRNA-binding protein (BOLL) to test whether they increase the risk of azoospermia among Bengali-speaking men from West Bengal, India. Sanger’s dideoxy sequencing was used to genotype 140 azoospermic individuals who tested negative for Y chromosome microdeletion and 120 healthy controls. In both cases and controls, qRT-PCR was used to determine the expression summary of SYCE1 and BOLL. The perceived harmful consequences of identified mutations were inferred using in silico analysis. Suitable statistical approaches were used to conduct the association study. We found SYCE1 177insT (ON245141), 10650T > G (ON257012), 10093insT (ON257013), 10653insG (ON292504), rs10857748A > G, rs10857749G > A, and rs10857750T > A and BOLL 7708T > A (ON245141insT), rs72918816T > C, and rs700655C > T variants with the prevalence of azoospermia. Data from qRT-PCR and in silico studies projected that the variations would either disrupt the transcript’s natural splice junctions or cause probable damage to the structure of the genes’ proteins. SYCE1 gene variants [177insT (ON245141), 10650T > G (ON257012), 10093insT (ON257013), 10653insG (ON292504), rs10857748A > G, rs10857749G > A, rs10857750T > A] and BOLL gene variants [7708T > A (ON245141insT), rs72918816T > C, rs700655C > T] reduce the expression of respective gene in testicular tissue among azoospermic male as revealed from qRT-PCR result. These genetic variations could be utilized as screening tools for male infertility to determine the best course of treatment in routine ART practise.

PMID:37957469 | DOI:10.1007/s43032-023-01393-8

Int J Cardiovasc Imaging. 2023 Nov 13. doi: 10.1007/s10554-023-02991-y. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

The ratio of early transmitral filling velocity to early diastolic strain rate (E/SRe) has been proposed as a new non-invasive measurement of left ventricular filling pressure. We aimed to investigate the ability of E/SRe to predict atrial fibrillation (AF) after ST-elevation myocardial infarction (STEMI). This was a prospective cohort study of patients (n = 369) with STEMI. Patients underwent an echocardiographic examination a median of two days after pPCI. By echocardiography, transmitral early filling velocity (E) was measured by pulsed-wave Doppler, and early diastolic strain rate (SRe) was measured by speckle tracking of the left ventricle. E was indexed to SRe and the early myocardial relaxation velocity (e’) to obtain the E/SRe and E/e’, respectively. The endpoint was new-onset AF. During follow-up (median 5.6 years, IQR: 5.0-6.1 years), 23 (6%) of the 369 patients developed AF. In unadjusted analyses, both E/SRe and E/e’ were significantly associated with AF [E/SRe: HR = 1.06; (1.03-1.10); p < 0.001, per 10 increase] and [E/e’: HR = 1.11 (1.05-1.17); p < 0.001, per 1 increase] and had equal Harrell’s C-statistic of 0.71. However, only E/SRe remained an independent predictor after multivariable adjustments for clinical and echocardiographic parameters [E/SRe: HR = 1.06 (1.00-1.11); p = 0.044, per 10 increase]. E/SRe was further significantly associated with AF in patients with E/e’ < 14 HR = 1.09 (1.01-1.17); p = 0.030, per 10 increase), also after multivariable adjustments. E/SRe is an independent predictor of AF in STEMI patients, even in subjects with seemingly normal filling pressure.

PMID:37957448 | DOI:10.1007/s10554-023-02991-y

Behav Res Methods. 2023 Nov 13. doi: 10.3758/s13428-023-02244-9. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

When two cognitive processes contribute to a behavioral output-each process producing a specific distribution of the behavioral variable of interest-and when the mixture proportion of these two processes varies as a function of an experimental condition, a common density point should be present in the observed distributions of the data across said conditions. In principle, one can statistically test for the presence (or absence) of a fixed point in experimental data to provide evidence in favor of (or against) the presence of a mixture of processes, whose proportions are affected by an experimental manipulation. In this paper, we provide an empirical diagnostic of this test to detect a mixture of processes. We do so using resampling of real experimental data under different scenarios, which mimic variations in the experimental design suspected to affect the sensitivity and specificity of the fixed-point test (i.e., mixture proportion, time on task, and sample size). Resampling such scenarios with real data allows us to preserve important features of data which are typically observed in real experiments while maintaining tight control over the properties of the resampled scenarios. This is of particular relevance considering such stringent assumptions underlying the fixed-point test. With this paper, we ultimately aim at validating the fixed-point property of binary mixture data and at providing some performance metrics to researchers aiming at testing the fixed-point property on their experimental data.

PMID:37957433 | DOI:10.3758/s13428-023-02244-9

Nature. 2023 Nov 13. doi: 10.1038/s41586-023-06852-5. Online ahead of print.

NO ABSTRACT

PMID:37957400 | DOI:10.1038/s41586-023-06852-5

Nat Med. 2023 Nov 13. doi: 10.1038/s41591-023-02656-2. Online ahead of print.

NO ABSTRACT

PMID:37957381 | DOI:10.1038/s41591-023-02656-2

Nat Med. 2023 Nov 13. doi: 10.1038/s41591-023-02615-x. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

Most human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) infections occur in cisgender women in resource-limited settings. In women, self-protection with emtricitabine/tenofovir disoproxil fumarate pre-exposure prophylaxis (FTC/TDF-PrEP) constitutes a major pillar of HIV prevention. However, clinical trials in women had inconsistent outcomes, sparking uncertainty about adherence requirements and reluctance in evaluating on-demand regimens. We analyzed data from published FTC/TDF-PrEP trials to establish efficacy ranges in cisgender women. In a ‘bottom-up’ approach, we modeled hypotheses in the context of risk-group-specific, adherence-efficacy profiles and challenged those hypotheses with clinical data. We found that different clinical outcomes were related to the proportion of women taking the product, allowing coherent interpretation of the data. Our analysis showed that 90% protection was achieved when women took some product. We found that hypotheses of putative male/female differences were either not impactful or statistically inconsistent with clinical data. We propose that differing clinical outcomes could arise from pill-taking behavior rather than biological factors driving specific adherence requirements in cisgender women.

PMID:37957377 | DOI:10.1038/s41591-023-02615-x

Arch Gynecol Obstet. 2023 Nov 13. doi: 10.1007/s00404-023-07269-1. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

PURPOSE: The aim of this meta-analysis was comparing the efficacy of GnRH antagonist (GnRH-ant) protocol and progestin-primed ovarian stimulation (PPOS) in polycystic ovarian syndrome (PCOS) women.

METHODS: A search was conducted from PubMed, Embase, The Cochrane library, Web of Science, and Scopus databases to collect clinical papers regarding GnRH-ant protocol and PPOS protocol from inception to September 2023. Subsequently, the retrieved documents were screened, and the content of the documents that conformed to the requirements was extracted. Moreover, statistical meta-analyses were conducted using the RevMan 5.4 software. Furthermore, with the use of a star-based system and the Cochrane handbook, the methodological quality of the covered papers was evaluated on the Ottawa-Newcastle scale.

RESULTS: A total of eight papers were covered in the meta-analysis, with 2156 PCOS women enrolled (i.e., 1085 patients in the GnRH-ant protocol group and 1071 patients in the PPOS group). As indicated by the meta-analysis results, the PPOS group was correlated with a lower risk of ovarian hyperstimulation syndrome (OHSS) (SMD = 9.24, [95% CI: (2.50, 34.21)], P = 0.0009), more gonadotropin (Gn) dose (SMD = – 0.34, [95% CI: (- 0.56, – 0.13)], P = 0.002) compared with GnRH-ant group. No statistical difference was identified on the oocytes condition and pregnancy outcomes.

CONCLUSIONS: As revealed by the data of this study, the progesterone protocol is comparable with the GnRH-ant protocol in oocytes condition and clinical outcomes. The progestin-primed ovarian stimulation could serve as an alternative for polycystic ovarian syndrome women who have failed in GnRH antagonist protocol. The above-described conclusions should be verified by more high-quality papers due to the limitation of the number and quality of included papers.

TRIAL REGISTRATION: PROSPERO registration: CRD42023411284.

PMID:37957365 | DOI:10.1007/s00404-023-07269-1

Sci Rep. 2023 Nov 13;13(1):19762. doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-47233-2.

ABSTRACT

This study aimed to examine the difference between the fractal dimension (FD) values of the mandibular trabecular bone and the panoramic mandibular index (PMI), mandibular cortical index (MCI) and mandibular cortical thickness (MCW) of patients with ankylosing spondylitis (AS) and healthy control group. A total of 184 individuals (92 cases, 92 controls), were examined in our study. PMI, MCI, and MCW values were calculated on panoramic images of all individuals. For FD values, the region of interest (ROI) was selected with the size of 100 × 100 pixels from the right-left gonial and interdental regions and 50 × 50 pixels from the condylar region. Degenerative changes in the temporomandibular joint (TMJ) region were recorded. PMI, MCI, and MCW values showed statistically significant differences between the groups (p = 0.000, p < 0.001). The radiological signs of mandibular cortical resorption were more severe in the case group than in the control group. PMI and MCW values were found to be lower in the case group than in the control group. It was determined that the number of C3 and C2 values, among the MCI values, was higher in the case group. Only the FD values of the ROI selected from the condyle region were found to be statistically significant and were lower in the case group (p = 0.026, p < 0.05). Degenerative changes in the TMJ region were significantly more frequent in the case groups (p = 0.000, p < 0.001). The fact that the mandibular cortex shows more resorptive features in individuals with AS may require further evaluation in terms of osteoporosis. Because of the low FD values of the condylar regions of these patients and the more frequent degenerative changes, the TMJ region should be followed carefully. Detailed examination of the mandibular cortex and condylar region is beneficial in patients with AS for screening and following osteoporotic changes in these individuals, which is essential for the patient’s life quality.

PMID:37957329 | DOI:10.1038/s41598-023-47233-2

Sci Rep. 2023 Nov 13;13(1):19726. doi: 10.1038/s41598-023-47108-6.

ABSTRACT

Hepatitis B is a risk factor for the development of intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma. The prognosis of HBV-related ICC remains to be further investigated. To investigate the clinical, pathological and imaging features of intrahepatic cholangiocarcinoma of hepatitis B virus-positive and -negative patients. Data from January 31, 2012 to December 31, 2019 of 138 patients were retrospectively analyzed. The patients were divided into hepatitis B virus-positive group (group A[n = 66]) and virus-negative group (group B[n = 72]), and the patients were divided into groups according to pathological differentiation degree and tumor size. The differences in clinical, imaging characteristics and the progression-free survival between groups were analyzed. There were significant differences in gender, age, HBc antibody, CA125 and AFP, tumor distribution site, maximum diameter, plain scan density, inferior hepatic angle, peritumoral bile duct dilatation, vascular encasement invasion, intrahepatic bile duct dilatation and lymphadenopathy between the two groups (P < 0.05); There were statistical differences in signs of vascular encasement invasion between the two groups with well-to-moderately differentiated tumors (P < 0.05); there were statistical differences in tumor density uniformity, signs of vascular encasement invasion and lymphadenopathy between the two groups with poorly differentiated tumors (P < 0.05). Large groups A and B showed differences in tumor density uniformity, vascular encasement invasion, arterial phase, overall reinforcement pattern, peritumoral bile duct stones and biliary dilatation (P < 0.05). There was no statistical difference in postoperative PFS between the two groups (P > 0.05). The clinical and imaging features of ICC of hepatitis B virus-positive and -negative patients are different, and there is little difference in postoperative disease-free survival time.

PMID:37957323 | DOI:10.1038/s41598-023-47108-6

Acta Neurochir (Wien). 2023 Nov 14. doi: 10.1007/s00701-023-05875-1. Online ahead of print.

ABSTRACT

BACKGROUND: Epilepsy, a disease characterized by recurrent seizures, is a common chronic neurologic condition. Antiepileptic drugs (AED) are the mainstay of treatment for epilepsy. Vagus nerve stimulation (VNS) surgery is an adjuvant therapy for the treatment of drug refractory epilepsy (DRE). VNS revision and implant removal surgeries remain common.

METHODS: Using a single neurosurgeon data registry for epilepsy surgery, we retrospectively analyzed a total of 824 VNS surgeries. Patients were referred to two Level IV Comprehensive Epilepsy centers (from 08/1997 to 08/2022) for evaluation. Patients were divided into four groups: new device placement, revision surgery, removal surgery, and battery replacement for end-of-life of the generator. The primary endpoint was to analyze the reasons that led patients to undergo revision and removal surgeries. The time period from the index surgery to the removal surgery was also calculated.

RESULTS: The median age of patients undergoing any type of surgery was 34 years. The primary reason for revision surgeries was device malfunction, followed by patients’ cosmetic dissatisfaction. There was no statistical sex-difference in revision surgeries. The median age and body mass index (BMI) of patients who underwent revision surgery were 38 years and 26, respectively. On the other hand, the primary reason for removal was lack of efficacy, followed again by cosmetic dissatisfaction. The survival analysis showed that 43% of VNS device remained in place for 5 years and 50% of the VNS devices were kept for 1533 days or 4.2 years.

CONCLUSIONS: VNS therapy is safe and well-tolerated. VNS revision and removal surgeries occur in less than 5% of cases. More importantly, attention to detail and good surgical technique at the time of the index surgery can increase patient satisfaction, minimize the need for further surgeries, and improve acceptance of the VNS technology.

PMID:37957310 | DOI:10.1007/s00701-023-05875-1